Yarn waxing apparatus



i- 1963 I A R. WALDENY A 3,393,660

YARN WAXING APPARATUS.

Filed March 21, 1966 INVENTOR RICHARD I. WALDEN ATTQRN S United States Patent Office 3,393,660 Patented July 23, 1968 3,393,660 YARN WAXING APPARATUS Richard I. Walden, Warwick, R.I., assignor to Leesona Corporation, Warwick, R.I., a corporation of Massachusetts Filed Mar. 21, 1966, Ser. No. 536,028 6 Claims. (Cl. 118-234) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE An apparatus having a rotating wax disc assembly for continuously waxing an advancing strand of yarn. The rotating disc is received on a spindle and is in direct driving engagement with the spindle until the disc is nearly consumed. As this disc is consumed a new wax disc on the spindle rotates the old disc and finally moves into waxing engagement with the stand of yarn, thus eliminating shut down of the apparatus for installation of the new disc.

g The present invention relates to winding machines and more particularly concerns an improved means for waxing yarnwound thereon.

In the following specification and claims, the term yarn is employed in a general sense to relate to all kinds of strandular material, either textile or otherwise, and the term wax is to be considered as referring to any composition of a solid wax-like material used as a textile lubricant or finish.

It is common in the textile industry to wind yarn from a supply source to form suitable packages and, as a part of the winding operation, to pass the yarn through a unit whereby the running strand may have wax applied thereto. It is customary to positively rotate a cake of wax while it bears on the running strand being drawn in a chordal manner beneath it, so that wax can be applied uniformly throughout the length of the strand. This permits the wax to wear down uniformly and to contact the yarn uniformly.

The wax cake is formed with a non-circular, usually square, axial hole which is received over a rotatable spindle of similar cross-section, the spindle acting to drive the wax cake. A difiiculty arises from the fact that the non-circular portion of the spindle terminates at a spaced distance above the upper surface of the platform over which the yarn advances, the lower portion of the spindle being reduced in diameter and generally circular in crosssection. As the cake of wax dimishes in thickness, it eventually becomes so thin that it is not engaged by the non-circular portion of the driving spindle. Hence, the rather thin wax cake is no longer positively rotated. As a reslt, the running strand merely acts to melt a channel in the bottom of the substantially stationary wax cake such that wax is no longer applied thereto. This, of course, produces unwaxed lengths of yarn. In the previously described course of events a further disadvantage arises in removing and discarding the remaining portion of the worn wax cake, wastefully, and replacing it with an entirely new cake. Removal of the old cake and insertion of the new cake required that the winding cease long enough to prevent the winding of unwaxed yarn, thereby considerably reducing the output capability of the winding machine.

The present invention provides a novel construction of wax cake which avoids the above-noted difficulties. The invention envisions a situation wherein one or more wax cakes are receivable on the wax-receiving spindle, each cake formed with projections and recesses such that the projections of a preceding wax cake are engageable with the recesses of a succeeding wax cake. In this manner, it is only necessary to place on the spindle a new cake over an old cake, the former acting to drive the latter after the latter diminishes to the thinness at which it no longer self-driving.

With the instant invention it is necessary only that the operator maintain a sufficient number of cakes on the spindle to assure a continued waxing operation until the operator returns to that particular winding station. It is no longer necessary to remove an old cake of wax since each cake, in accordance with the invention, is entirely consumed in the waxing process. This, of course, permits a saving of wax but more importantly does not necessitate stoppage of the machine for removal of the old cake and replenishment with the new cake.

In view of the above, therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a novel construction of a wax cake for use with a winding machine which permits an improved operation and economy thereof.

Another object of the invention is to provide a novel waxing apparatus for a winding machine according to which additional cakes of wax may be applied thereto without interrupting the winding operation.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a novel waxing apparatus for a winding machine employing cakes of wax formed with keying means such that adjacent cakes of wax are drivingly coupled together.

Still another object of the invention is the provision of a novel waxing apparatus for a winding machine wherein cakes of wax employed therewith are entirely consumed.

Other and further objects of the invention will in part appear hereinafter.

For a more complete understanding of the invention, refrence should be made to the accompanying drawings in which like numbers refer to like elements throughout.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of a mechanism embodying the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a detail elevation view, in section, illustrating the novel wax cakes of the invention;

FIG. 3 is a detail plan view of the elements shown in FIG. 2.

The mechanism employed for driving a wax cake taking the form of the invention may be of a conventional design. Such mechanism is illustrated in FIG. 1 in connection with a winding machine having a substantially flat panel 10 forming the top of a compartment 11 supported in inclined relationship to the frame 12 of the winding machine by a bracket 14 projecting forwardly from said frame. Panel 10 mounts a yarn guide 16 on the forward end thereof. A tensioning unit 18 which may be of any well known type is mounted rearwardly of said guide 16. A slub catcher 20 is supported at the rearward or upper end of frame 10, inspecting the yarn before it is fed to the winding means (not shown). As illustrated herein, a vacuum duct 22 is shown as extending longitudinally of frame 12 and is connected to a vacuum pump (not shown) which evacuates said duct. A conduit 24 connects duct 22 with an orifice as at 26 passing through panel 10 adjacent slub catcher 20 and adapted to remove any loose material which may collect in that area.

A pair of supply packages 28 and 30 are mounted below panel 10 on upright spindles 32 and 33 supported on a rotatable plate 34. In turn, plate 34 is supported on frame 36 by a spacer 38. Frame 36 extends longitudinally of the machine parallel to frame 12 and serves to provide a guard for rotatable shaft 40.

Shaft 40 runs lengthwise of the textile machine and is connected to suitable power means, such as an electric motor (not shown) at one end of the machine, which serves to rotate the shaft. A bevel gear 42 fixed on shaft 40 is positioned to mate with a bevel gear 44 fast on an upright shaft 46 which extends upwardly through housing 48 and emerges within compartment 11.. The upper portion of shaft 46 mounts power clutch mechanism 50 for selectively rotating plate 34 in a well-known manner to index a new bobbin to unwinding position. That portion of shaft 46 above clutch mechanism 50 is reduced in diameter to mount a collar 52 fast thereon. A pin 54, fixed in the periphery of collar 52 extends radially therefrom, and it will be obvious that as rotation is imparted to shaft 40, shaft 46 will rotate to drive pin 54 thereabout.

A pulley 56 having a grooved periphery is mounted for rotation on a stub shaft 58 projecting downwardly from panel 10. Pulley 56 is held on shaft 58 by split ring 62. A driving pin 64 is fixed in the bottom face of pulley 56 eccentrically of shaft 58 and depends therefrom to be engaged and driven by pin 54.

A spindle 66 extends through panel 10, terminating above said panel in an enlarged non-circular, preferably square, stud 70, the shoulder 78 of which rotates on the upper end of bearing 68. A grooved pulley 72 having a hub 74 is mounted fast on shaft 66 below panel and is held thereon by set screw 76. A belt 80 is passed about pulleys 56 and 72 in the grooves therein such that rotation of shaft 46 is imparted to spindle 66.

A circular platform 82 having an axial bore is fixed on the upper surface of panel 10 around spindle 66. As shown in FIG. 2, an upper, inactive wax disc 84 and a lower partially consumed active wax disc 84 have noncircular, preferably square, axial holes received over stud 70 in a loose fitting relationship both initially with the lower disc 84' resting on platform 82. Thus, as the lower wax disc 84' wears away both discs are free to slide downwardly on spindle 66. Platform 82 and stud 70 are so positioned on panel 10 that the strand of yarn Y, as it advances from tensioning means 18 through slub catcher 20, will lie on the surface of platform 82 adjacent spindle 66.

In FIG. 2, it will be seen that stud 70 is raised above the upper surface of platform 82 to provide suflicient clearance for the passage thereunder of the heaviest grade of yarn with which winding is contemplated. This arrangement is provided so that the yarn is not subjected to the reciprocal motion which would be imparted thereto if it were drawn adjacent to square-shaped, stud 70 as it rotates.

The wax cakes of conventional usage were flat discs which operated satisfactorily until they diminished to a thickness approximately equal to the clearance of stud 70 above platform 82. When it diminished to this reduced size, a wax cake would no longer engage stud 70 to be rotated thereby, and if the machine operator did not promptly notice and correct this deficiency, considerable lengths of yarn were wound in the unwaxed state.

FIGS. 2 and 3 illustrate cakes of wax of novel construction according to the invention, each cake 84 being generally of disc-shape and provided with projections 86 on the upper side thereof and with mating depressions 88 on the underside thereof. Stud 70 receives cakes 84, 84' in stacked relationship, and while FIG. 2 illustrates only two such cakes thereon, it will be appreciated that stud 70 or spindle 66 may be modified to receive and drive any desired number of wax cakes. The projections 86 of the lower wax cake 84 are of such a size and location as to be engaged in recesses 88 of the upper wax cake 84. Furthermore, the lower cake 84' is seen in FIG. 2 to be diminished to such a size as would prevent stud 70 from rotating it, but for the presence of upper cake 84 which is free to migrate downwardly on spindl 4. 66 and positively drives the former through mating projections 86 and recesses 88. So long as at least a portion of the uppermost cake is engaged by the square portion of stud 70, the upper cake 84 will continue to drive the lower cake 84' until the latter is entirely consumed.

It will be appreciated that the number, form, and place.- ment of the mating projections and depressions is arbitrary, the important point being that means are provided for keying two adjacent cakes of wax so that a cake of diminished size will continue to be positively driven by a succeeding cake. Thus, the invention herein is not to be limited to the particular construction illustrated in the drawings, but may take any desired form which will serve to key two adjacent cakes together on spindle 66.

While the invention herein has been shown and described as embodied in a preferred form of construction, various modifications may be made in the structure thereof without departing from the inventive concept. Thus, all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall'be interpreted as illustrative and not in the limiting sense.

What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus for continuously treating an advancing strand of yarn, comprising, wax disc means for engaging and waxing said strand, said wax disc means being expendible during waxing of said strand and including an active wax disc adapted to engage said strand for waxing the strand, and an inactive wax disc, means mounting said discs for movement of said inactive disc into waxing engagement with said strand as said active disc is consumed to provide substantially continuous waxing of said strand, drive means drivingly engaged with said inactive disc and substantially drivingly disengaged from said active disc when the active disc is partially consumed during waxing of the strand, and means connecting said inactive disc with said active disc for driving said active disc when the last said disc is drivingly disengaged from the drive means.

2. Apparatus as set forth in claim 1 wherein said mounting means includes a spindle receiving said active and inactive disks thereon.

3. Apparatus as set forth in claim 2 wherein said drive means includes a portion of said spindle drivingly engaged with at least said inactive disk, said active disc being spaced apart from at least an adjacent portion of said spindle to define a zone, and means for guiding said yarn through said zone during waxing of the yarn.

4. Apparatus as set forth in claim 3 including support means for disposing said spindle in a substantially upright position, said active and inactive wax disks being movable downwardly on said spindle as said active wax disk is consumed in waxing said yarn, said inactive wax disk automatically assumingthe position of said active wax disk to continue waxing of said yarn when said inactive disk is consumed.

5. A wax disc assembly for use in continuously waxing an advancing strand of yarn, the assembly being expendible during waxing of said strand and comprising, an active was disc engageable with the advancing strand for waxing the strand, an inactive wax disc, said discs each having means defining aligned holes adapted to receive a spindle for movement of said discs to maintain contact between the active disc and the strand and for movement of said inactive wax disc into engagement with said strand as said active wax disc is consumed, said inactive disc including means adapted to cooperate with said spindle for rotating the inactive disc responsive to rotation of the spindle, for rotating said active disc when said inactive disc is rotated.

'6. An assembly as set forth in claim 5 wherein said discs have facially opposed portions and said interlocking means is on said portions.

(References on following page) 5 6 References Cited FOREIGN PATENTS UNITED STATES PATENTS 264,736 1/1927 Great Britain.

1,673,328 6/1928 Harris. 2,235,229 3/1941 Lytton CHARLES A. WILLMUTH, Przmary Examiner.

2,997,017 8/ 1961 Steele 118-78 5 ROBERT I. SMITH, Assistant Examiner. 

